Palpatine is a strange figure in Star Wars. We know his wizened face from the original and sequel trilogies, but in the prequels, we’re reminded that he was once just a minor Naboo royal who was seduced to the Dark Side. He enjoys going to the ballet, he plays the dutiful senator, and he collects Ancient Sith artifacts, which, in retrospect, should have been a red flag.
He also, at one point, followed the Rule of Two and murdered his Sith master, Darth Plagueis, the subject of one of Revenge of the Sith’s most memorable monologues. The human part of Palpatine is easy to forget, but a new novel is exploring it... and his late master’s legacy.
